Re: This kid is a beast. 13 years old and this good! Anyone on here know about him?

Quote:

Originally Posted by dealt_with

The kid is an amateur and boxing starts from the grassroots up, the US have been terrible in the amateurs in recent years and as a result there are no good American pros coming through. The US system produces fighters with more style than substance, it's more about looking good than being good. When a fighter does well in the amateurs he generally does well in the pros, i.e Andre Ward. The US is lagging behind and it all starts in the amateurs. I don't care about the entire history of boxing, the story right now is that US boxing is in poor condition. This kid isn't going to develop as a boxer in the US, he'd be better off following the MMA route.

That is more indicative of recent changes in the sport than an assessment of the quality of US (pro) program. Amateur Boxing no longer resembles Boxing. It is a fencing match. It doesn't translate well to the pros. A pro style doesn't translate well to it.

This is why previous years' Olympic rosters read like a who-will-be-who in pro Boxing. Now? Who are the gold medalists and what have they done? The winners are a bunch of nobodies on the pro scene.